US military confirms Iran war has led to munitions shortfall

The U.S. government watchdog released its first report on Monday, detailing the impact of the Iran war on American weapons stockpiles, military bases, and diplomatic outposts in the Middle East. The Pentagon inspector general's report, first reported by NBC News, provided the most comprehensive accounting of the conflict's costs to date.

The war has resulted in strategic inventory shortfalls and bottlenecks for munitions resupply, with advanced weapons requiring about three years to replenish to previous levels. During the April 1 to June 30 period covered by the report, Iranian strikes damaged and destroyed hundreds of structures at U.S. bases in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman, and Jordan.

Additionally, dozens of American aircraft and drones were destroyed or damaged. The war's costs to U.S. diplomatic facilities were previously unknown, but the report revealed that sites in Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE incurred an estimated $184 million in damage. State Department costs totaled $113 million, primarily used for evacuation expenses and contingency plans.

The evacuation operation, involving private and commercial flights as well as land and water travel, cost over $11 million as of late June, with the majority of evacuations occurring from Israel. Over $44 billion in emergency and non-emergency military sales were made to regional countries, with Saudi Arabia receiving the largest share.